Achi news desk-
The government has been accused of being “very weak” and “naive” on the potential threat posed by China, ahead of an expected announcement of new sanctions against Beijing.
Sir Simon Clarke, a former cabinet minister, hit out at the government this morning, saying every time there is talk of a “reset” in relations there is “fresh evidence of malign activity”.
The threat of Chinese state interference in British democracy is due to be raised in the House of Commons this afternoon by the deputy prime minister, Oliver Dowden.
The deputy First Minister will tell MPs that China is behind cyber attacks on the Electoral Commission as well as against 43 MPs and peers, in a major piece said to have started in August 2021 but was not identified until a month October 2022.
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The hackers are said to have accessed the names and addresses of anyone in Britain who was registered to vote between 2014 and 2022.
In a post on X/Twitter, Sir Simon suggested that the UK should not make “the same mistake” with Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, as it did with Vladimir Putin.
He said: “We must end our naivety about China. Every time we talk about a reset, there is new evidence of malignant activity. Hong Kong. The Uighurs. Taiwan. An attack on our democracy. If we blame ourselves for not seeing Putin’s true nature, why make the same mistake as Xi?”
As the deputy prime minister prepares to address parliament later today, former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith has also branded the government “very weak” on cyber threats from China.
“The United States has approved about 12 officials in Xinjiang and 42 officials in Hong Kong – all very senior in the Chinese system”, he told the Financial Times.
He added: “The UK has only approved three people in Xinjiang and none in Hong Kong – and we used to run the place. It beggars belief”.
Lord Cameron, the foreign secretary, is expected to address the Conservative backbench 1922 Committee later today to warn of the threat posed by China.
He has previously been criticized by MPs for what they describe as his “soft stance” on Beijing.
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